Booms, whistles, and hot sparks fill the evening air as a team of operators power on 750 light show drones at the far end of the Wisconsin International Speedway. Thousands of ticket holders fill the stands while Guild members set up their chairs trackside. After night falls, the performance begins. Fireworks bloom in shapes and cadences rarely seen anywhere else, punctuated with percussives that rattle the crowd's seats — and for the night's final display, a fleet of brilliant LEDs rise to join the pyrotechnics against the sky.

It's the fourth year in a row that Verge Aero's network of drone show operators has been invited to perform at the Pyrotechnic Guild International convention, a premiere global event in the fireworks industry.

Ever since the viral moment in 2023 when Verge Aero first integrated drones with fireworks on its stage, integrated displays have become a signature part of the convention.

Rachel Harrison, PGI's Social Media Lead since the summer of 2025 and a member of the Verge Aero team since early 2026, said prior years' footage of the integrated displays has made the convention's video content far more compelling — and this year, social media was the top source driving ticket sales for the public displays.

"That footage became one of the most useful visual tools I had throughout the campaign," Harrison said. "We weren't just trying to show fireworks, but show an experience people may not have seen before. The drone-and-firework footage helped us stop people mid-scroll, make them curious about PGI, and give them a reason to look into the public display nights."

PGI President Craig Hetherington credits drones — and the promotion of integrated displays — with helping drive ticket sales.

"The public wants to see these crazy things they never get to see at your city firework or drone shows," he said.

Hetherington, a visionary on the PGI's board of directors in recent years, first imagined drones at the convention after seeing Verge Aero featured on America's Got Talent: Extreme and reached out.

His musings became a reality in 2023 when the dystopian robot came to life.

"That moment changed everybody's mind about how you can integrate different mediums together," he said.

In 2024, Hetherington pitched to Peter Rogoz at Spirit of '76 on "telling a story" with drones and fireworks. The result was the narrative-driven Cosmos display, which Hetherington says changed everybody's opinion about what's possible. "[Rogoz] did something that's never been done before, and it was like putting a picture book in the sky and putting pyro to it."

Although some in the PGI membership felt it leaned too heavily on drones, people's opinions were shifting, and it was tangible for Hetherington.

Two more years of original storytelling and innovative scenes followed — from the 2025 epic "Quest" to this year's musically-driven display — leading Hetherington to say he "couldn't have dreamt it better than how it's evolved."

He compares the rise of drones to the industry's earlier shift towards wireless firing systems — a modern evolution of aerial entertainment that he believes puts PGI at the forefront of innovation.

"The drones have changed everything, including pyromusicals," he said. "The robot face was revolutionary. It just showed everyone, whatever you can dream, you can actually do now."

Verge Aero's partnership with the fireworks community is rooted in a shared passion for live entertainment and artistry. Several employees at Verge Aero, FlyLight, and other drone partners got their start in pyrotechnics — and exposure to PGI has drawn some drone crew members into the world of fireworks.

"It's amazing to see drones become a staple of the public's PGI experience, and it's an honor for the Verge Partner Network to play a major role in that," said Chris Lutts, Vice President of Sales at Verge Aero. "I myself have been involved in the fireworks industry for over two decades, and I see drone show companies following a similar trajectory as firework display companies. We're all chasing the next big thing in live entertainment, and integrations like this are key to growing it."

Mixing drones into the world of pyrotechnics still draws mixed reactions in pyro circles. Some remain sensitive to drone shows being used where fireworks cannot be launched. But rather than treat one as a threat to the other, the PGI and the Verge Network see the opportunity to evolve both mediums together.

That's a big reason why Verge Aero supports organizations like PGI and the American Pyrotechnics Association (APA) — to help uphold the art of pyrotechnics alongside the rise of drone show technology.

"Drones and fireworks aren't rivals — they're partners," Verge Aero states. "They complement each other in ways that enhance the overall experience ... creating something more spectacular than either could achieve on their own."

After each well-received integrated display from the Verge Powered Network, few dispute the entertainment value drones and pyrotechnics bring when displayed in harmony.

"I was gobsmacked," said Tom Calderwood, longtime pyrotechnician and photographer, after witnessing this year's integrated show at PGI. "Excellent timing, using the pyro to hide and reveal the drones, the relationship of the devices to the words in the songs...holy cow."

Drone-and-firework displays at PGI typically come together in a matter of days. In the weeks before the convention, the drone design team works with a co-presenting firework company on direction and content. This year, Precision Fireworks led the pyrotechnics in Saturday's integrated show, while Spirit of '76 Fireworks co-presented Wednesday's National Anthem display with the Verge drone network.

With next year's display planning phase already in swing, Verge Aero has big plans brewing for drone integrations at PGI 2027.

A massive thank-you to the #PoweredByVerge network partners who helped make the 2026 PGI integrated shows possible:

• BrightWave FX
• Chicago Drone Light Shows
• Fantasy Drone Shows
• FlyLight Drone Shows
• Fireworks by Grucci
• Northern Lights Drone Shows
• Sky Harmony Drone Shows
• Vector Aerial Systems
• Vegas Drones
• Adhoc Creative House